Gladiators add pair of local products

DULUTH, Ga. - The Atlanta Gladiators have announced on Wednesday that Malcolm Hayes and Zach Yoder have agreed to terms for the 2021-22 season.

Hayes, an Atlanta native, is entering his third year of professional hockey. He most recently played 12 games with the Birmingham Bulls in the Southern Professional Hockey League last season. During his rookie campaign in 2019-20, Hayes split time between the Kansas City Mavericks and SPHL’s Fayetteville Marksmen.

Prior to turning pro, the 26-year-old played collegiately at the University of Maine and at the University of Alaska-Anchorage, skating in 88 career games.

Yoder, a 26-year-old Woodstock, Georgia native, also enters his third season of professional hockey. He turned pro in the 2019-20 season with the Toledo Walleye. Last season, Yoder skated in eight games with the Huntsville Havoc in the SPHL.

Yoder was a local standout at Woodstock High School where he earned three letters on the ice for the Wolverines and two on the lacrosse field. Prior to his professional start, he played four seasons of NCAA Division I hockey, suiting up for one season at the Air Force Academy before transferring to Ferris State University. During three campaigns with the Bulldogs, the defenseman skated in 98 contests, recording 21 pooints (5g-16a) and amassing 124 penalty minutes.